The trial of Steve-O Malone
by dustdancingintheflickerlight
Summary: Kevin, Dynasty, Connor and Imogen thought they'd all get simpler lives now Steve-O had been arrested. Think again.
1. Chapter 1

AN: This begins at the end of the last episode. There's one big change that I've added, purely because I was confused about it in the episode; you'll probably understand once you read it. I'm not entirely sure whether I'll be carrying this on, it started off that way but I realised it will be the my third active fic and I don't know if I can keep up - having said that, drop me an opinion and if it's liked I might carry it on because thinking about it, the title seems odd if I don't.

Anyway, enough rambling from me. Hope you enjoy and thanks for reading. Let me know what you think!

* * *

They became an entanglement of limbs in the police waiting room. Kevin Chalk and Dynasty Barry, finally free to be together without the external threat of a violent ex-boyfriend, although Steve-O's mark was going to be there for a long time to come. It was going to take a while for Dynasty to overcome the obstacles placed in front of her, but after a week of silent suffering, she finally found the comfort she had been searching for in Kevin's arms.

"I'm sorry." Kevin repeated, when they broke apart. "I was such an idiot. I was thinking about that scumbag when I should've been thinking about you."

"You don't have to apologise, Kevin." Dynasty sighed, interlocking their fingers. "Come on, we'll wait for Connor with the others."

…

Blanketed in an uncomfortably awkward atmosphere, Christine Mulgrew and Imogen Stewart waited in complete silence. The latter had been regretting her outburst, mentally cursing herself for letting the fact she was married slip out so easily; it hadn't been necessary, Imogen didn't need to say it, she just needed to get help for Dynasty.

The traumatised girl's admission had saddened both of them, and Christine couldn't get it out of her mind. It had happened, again. The worst thing a man can ever choose to inflict upon a woman, or vice versa, had struck again. After finally overcoming her demons and ridding herself of alcohol for the foreseeable future, it wasn't nice to see someone else affected by it all over again. One thing hurt about today more than most – she couldn't bring herself to say the word rape, and to her, it signified that _he _was still winning, even after all these years.

And now her son was being questioned by the police on grounds of conspiring to harm with intent… her married son. A strange thing to find out, but with the chaos surrounding poor Dynasty's confession, she hadn't quite decided how to react.

Imogen decided the time was right to break the ice but as she did, Kevin and Dynasty entered and the words on the tip of her tongue changed. "How'd it go?"

"It wasn't nice… it wasn't nice to talk about it. But it's over now, isn't it? He's gone." Dynasty tried out a smile, but her timid delivery showed her mood. She tried to cover up by adding, "I hate police stations. Remind me of my dad."

The three of them gently asked Dynasty about the questioning process, cautiously choosing their words so as not to trigger any sort of emotional reaction; she had done enough crying today. At one point, Kevin slipped his hand into hers, as he had done earlier that day in English – that felt like a lifetime ago. Fear mixed toxically with adrenaline was still pumping through his veins. Talking about killing Steve-O was easy enough; in reality, the whole thing had terrified him. Looking back just a couple of hours later, Kevin mentally chastised himself. He didn't know how to handle a gun! He would've bottled it when the maniac turned up, endangering himself and Connor in the process. _I did that anyway_, he remembered. That gun could have so easily been loaded, and he would be lying in a hospital bed now, or worse, a morgue. Guilt powered through him at that. His best friend was right when he said it wasn't what Dynasty wanted or needed but he hadn't listened, because he never listened.

"Where's Connor?" Kevin asked, suddenly. "They've kept him in way longer than me."

Christine had been quiet during while the kids chatted. She knew exactly why they had kept her son in custody longer than Kevin, but she didn't want to say it.

"Why have they released you _on bail_ if you haven't done anything wrong?" Imogen wondered, though still not sure what exactly had happened down at the docks. Seeing her husband and one of her closest friends in handcuffs was a massive shock.

It was a thought playing on Dynasty's mind, too. "Yeah, what even happened down there?"

"The police said they had an anonymous call." Kevin started; he knew Barry had called them, but admitting that would only cause more trouble in the long run. "Basically, the called insinuated that someone was going to be seriously harmed down at the docks by two boys in school uniform." That part left a bitter taste in his mouth; Barry hadn't needed to mention that. He could've reported Steve-O and explained his whereabouts, but no, he twisted it. Noticing the startled looks on all of their faces, he quickly carried on. "It wasn't like that! And Connor was only there because he was trying to stop me. That's why we were late for your lesson this morning, Miss. He was trying to talk me out of it but I wouldn't listen. When Dynasty told me what Steve-O had done to her, I saw red. Anyway, we were arguing and then Steve-O turned up and pulled a gun."

The others took a sharp breath of air as they listened, not quite expecting to find out what had truly happened. Kevin recounted the rest of the tale – arguing with Steve-O before he pulled the trigger, only to realise the gun was empty. It was quite difficult to talk about it when the details had to be spontaneously edited.

It was a little while later when the doors to the waiting room opened, and a police officer entered. "Dynasty Barry?"

She stood up. "Y-yeah?"

"We have formally detained Steve-O Malone on one count of rape, one count of blackmail, two counts of harassment and one count of possessing illegal firearms. He will not be granted bail, due to his previous convictions."

Dynasty's legs felt like jelly and the nauseating feeling that had been prominent since the attack intensified. "So, he's going back to jail, yeah?"

"It's likely, but there will be a trial sometime in the near future. You will be called to testify."

If she had expected it at all, her whole mind took it as a huge blow. Of course she would have to give evidence... but standing up there, in front of a jury, defence, and prosecution sounded like the scariest thing in the world. He would be watching, too. Steve-O – the name felt like bile in her throat now, where once it had been the name of the most special bloke in the whole world. Granted, she was just a kid when they first got together, a kid without much ambition or encouragement from her family. To Carol Barry, Steve-O was an absolute diamond sent from heaven; a perfect match for her beautiful daughter, a man who would provide for her and fund the life-style that a Barry girl deserves.

Attending Waterloo Road changed all that. Dynasty realised she was worth more than a council flat and a couple of kids, designer handbags and boxes of peroxide – and then he turned up to Scotland, paroled. Suddenly, she was swept up in nostalgia and adrenaline, and she found herself falling back into his clutches.

"Excuse me, but where is my son?" The teacher asked, nervously.

"Yeah, where's Connor?" Kevin repeated. "Has he been released on bail, like me?"

"I'm sorry to be the one to inform you of this, but we'll have to keep Connor in custody."

"What?" Christine paled. She knew why, she just didn't want to confront it. "Why?"

"As you're probably aware, your son has a criminal record and by getting arrested he broke the conditions of his probation. Don't worry, though. This case has extenuating circumstances, and we are pretty sure Mr Mulgrew won't be faced with a jail sentence. From interviewing you both," the officer turned to Kevin. "it sounds like you two are innocent of the things you're accused of, but it's procedure. We'll be keeping him in overnight."

"Will you release him tomorrow then, if it's just overnight?" Imogen said, nervously.

"It looks likely. As I said, it's all procedure. If we could find the source of the phone-call, we'd have more chance of understand what happened and clearing you both of all charges."

"It was Barry." The words slipped out of Kevin's mouth before he had chance to think about them. Barry would no doubt kill him for entangling him in this mess, but if it got Connor out of the cells, it was worth it. "It was Barry, Dynasty's brother."

"What?" Dynasty had to sit back down. It was getting worse and worse, too confusing for her muddled brain to take.

"Connor told Barry what Steve-O did to Dynasty. It was all a set-up so he could get back at Steve-O, but I didn't realise. The gun was empty because Barry unloaded it.. the police car pulled up just as Barry ran off. He made us swear to keep it between us three but I don't care. You can't keep Connor in when he didn't do anything wrong! He was there to stop me from doing something stupid, that's all, I swear." He took a deep breath. "I want to change my statement, please."

Tears stung Dynasty's eyes, again. She knew Barry suspected something when he came questioning her at break. He was uncharacteristically afraid of Steve-O but it did make sense, in a way; Barry's strong sense of family loyalty had only ever faltered once, when Kacey announced she was a boy. The tears were happy. Between Kevin, Connor, Imogen, her brother and even her English teacher, the isolation that had plagued her since the assault was finally wavering, and she realised she did have people there for her, willing to help her.

Dynasty Barry was not alone, and she wasn't going to let Steve-O Malone break her.


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Decided to carry it on because I had an idea of what I want to do with it!

Thank-you to WaterlooRoad16, K. and AllyKat8 for reviewing - you're all lovely and wonderful and brilliant. (And AllyKat8, Checkmate is so amazing. Means a lot that you liked this!)

* * *

The empty bottles of beer on the sideboard were the only sign that anything had happened at Chalky's flat and even they wouldn't raise anyone's suspicions, which made Kevin feel absolutely sick. He had decided he owed it to his foster dad to clean the flat before he explained what had happened, but looking at the normality of the place wasn't nice, so he tried in vain to get the thoughts of rape, attackers, prison and trials out of his mind by blasting whatever music was loudest.

"You're cleaning?" Daniel Chalk chuckled, bringing with him the air of cheerfulness that seemed to follow him wherever he went. "First time for everything, I suppose!"

Taken aback by the unexpected voice, Kevin shouted, "Chalky! What are you doing here?"

"Christine called me." The man dumped his rucksack down on the sofa, and noticing the boys look of annoyance, said, "Don't look like that, she did the right thing! What were you playing at, Kevin? You could've been sent to prison, or worse!"

Kevin didn't really have anything to say to that. He didn't know what he was thinking or what he was doing, which angered him more than it could anger any police officers, teachers, or foster dads combined. Finally, Connor's words were resonating with him. _Do you think that's what Dynasty wants? Because it isn't! So you're not doing this for her. _The girl had been attacked in the most brutal and unforgiving of ways and what did he do? Put his own selfish desires before even thinking about offering her reassurances, a shoulder to cry on. Looking back now, if not for Barry's intervention, there was a possibility of his death and imagining Dynasty plunge into an unnecessary grief on top of her distress.. the guilt was too much to handle.

Chalky put the kettle on, brewing up two cups of tea. He handed one to Kevin and sat down beside him on the sofa. "I don't know. I can't leave you for five minutes, can I?"

His perpetual frown didn't waver despite best efforts. "I don't know what to do. I've messed up so bad."

"Don't be so hard on yourself. The police aren't taking it any further, are they?"

"Me and Connor have to testify at the trial as witnesses but I'm not sure what happens about being on bail and stuff." Kevin sighed despondently, resting his head on the back of the sofa. "How long are you staying for?"

"I've could only get a week off, but I'll make sure I'm back for the trial."

"You don't have to."

"I want to." Sensing Kevin's misery, Chalky playfully nudged him and said, "So, you and Dynasty Barry, eh?"

...

"Okay, settle down please!" Mrs Mulgrew said to her year twelve's. "The coursework deadline is fast approaching, so today we really need to focus on the poetry aspect of your exam. We're going to look at Oscar Wilde's The Ballad of The Reading Gaol. Quick overview then - can anyone tell me briefly what the poem is about?"

Jack McAllister's hand shot up. "It's about the time he spent in prison, Miss."

"Good. And reading between the lines, how does Wilde feel about his experiences?" It was as if she had forgotten all about the events of the past couple of days, completely ignorant to the fact this conversation might be making her son and his best friend feel slightly awkward - that was, until, Scout decided to chirp right up.

"If you wanna know about jail experiences why don't you just ask Connor, Miss?"

Having previously been staring out of the window with little interest in the class, Connor snapped back to reality. It was what he had been dreading the most about returning to school, the uncomfortable questions. When he came back after admitting starting the fire, it was different. Dodging people was easier because he was so good at keeping himself to himself; when he was younger, he found himself blending so well into the background he sometimes thought himself actually invisible. This time, though, the reputation was going to be harder to shatter. It's not every day you're involved in a potential shooting, only to spend time in a cell. "What?"

Realising the position she had put him in, Christine awkwardly tried to cover her tracks. "Okay, I don't really think this is relevant."

"Go on, Connor! What was it like?" Rihannon encouraged. "I bet it was well exciting."

"Dead exciting." Connor said, sarcasm dripping off his tongue. "The best bit was trying to sleep while hearing mentalists protesting their innocence. Oh no, I tell a lie, it was reading the graffiti on the walls from other prisoners who'd been in there."

The red-headed girl looked oddly sheepish. "I was only asking."

"Well don't."

"Just ignore them, mate." Kevin reassured half-heartedly, as the teacher got back to tediously analysing the poem to within an inch of its life. "It's not like you did anything wrong." Connor gave him a shrug, and the rest of the lesson passed fairly quickly, uninterrupted until Kevin and Connor felt their phones vibrating in their pockets, at exactly the same time. They had been giving special permission by the head allowing them to keep their phones, in case the police needed to get in contact.

The matching texts read: _MEET ME AT THE DOCKS ASAP. IF YOU DON'T COME I WILL MAKE SURE YOU REGRET IT _


	3. Chapter 3

AN: I'm sorry this is so short, and for how I've left it but I think this part being short and sharp will work well (hope so anyway) and I'll get the next part up as soon as possible, probably tomorrow. The next chapter will be longer :-)

yaya, HeyItsKerry, SociallyAwkwardUnicorn, WaterlooRoad16, and AllyKat8 - can't thank you enough for the lovely reviews, you brilliant people. And everyone who is reading, you're brilliant too! X

* * *

The threatening nature of the message cemented the boys' decision that the best thing to do was get down there as soon as possible. Almost as soon as the bell for next lesson went they stuffed their books in their bags and darted out of the door, expertly dodging questions from their respective girlfriends. It must have been Barry. It was the only logical solution; the police told Kevin that Steve-O wouldn't be bailed due to previous convictions and the seriousness of the charge. Kevin had been expecting retaliation for some time, if anything, he was surprised Barry had taken this long to set the wheels in motion.

"He's going to kill us." Kevin fretted, his anxiety-ridden words breaking the silence that had hung prominently between the two boys as they made their way down to the docks. Faint screeching of car tires in the distance was the only thing that could be heard; the quietness did not punctuate the fear. "Are you pissed off at me? Is that why you're not speaking?"

Connor shrugged uninterestedly. "I don't blame you for telling the police that Barry was involved, it got me out of prison, didn't it?"

"I know, it was worth it, but you're getting dragged into another one of my messes."

"I was dragged into this the minute I let Barry dump that stupid truck onto me, and I changed my statement as well, remember? He'll be angry at us both but don't worry about it, 'cause what's the worst that can happen? All he can do is rough us up a bit." Connor tried to rationalise, as they arrived at the old warehouse. "He won't do anything else if he's so scared about police attention."

Kevin sighed; Barry showing up at the docks last week showed he felt emotion, at least. Surely, he wouldn't want to do anything to intensify his sisters distress by hurting her boyfriend? "Yeah. Come on then, can't put this off forever can we?"

The warehouse was eerily silent until Connor tripped over, knocking over some scrap metal as he went. A distinct clanging noise ricocheted around the abandoned yard, bouncing of each wall and sending Kevin's increasing heart rate through the roof. It seemed as if no-one was here but they refused to let themselves hope this could be an elaborate trick, they had to be certain before they left.

"Lads."

Stood quite a distance in front of them, Barry Barry looked odd. Gone was the teenager who oozed confidence beyond his years, in its place was a lad bordering on dishevelled, with a swollen lip dripping blood onto his chin. That well and truly frightened Connor and Kevin - something was wrong here, something was really wrong.

His voice was a croak. "Lads.. you won't here this from me often, but I'm sorry."

And then Connor fell to the floor.. Kevin barely had enough time to react before he collapsed, too.

Breathing ragged and eyes heavy, he let the blackness engulf him.


	4. Chapter 4

AN: Hey! Hope you enjoy.

Thanks to charley, SociallyAwkwardUnicorn, brightlightsbrighterdreams, HeyItsKerry, AllyKat8 and WaterlooRoad16 for the lovely reviews. You get all the virtual hugs!

* * *

An excruciating pain blasted through Kevin's head, forcing his eyes to shoot open and take in his surroundings. Everything looked disorientated. Blinking quickly in a vain attempt to clear his vision, the first thing he managed to see properly made him feel nauseous - a worse for wear Connor, dried blood draped along his forehead, hands tied behind his back. They seemed to be in a flat but the whereabouts were unknown as the curtains were pulled tightly shut, leaving the only source of light being a dull lamp in the corner.

"Connor?" Kevin shifted as quietly as he could over to his best friend, shaking him gently. "Connor, wake up." It took a fair bit of goading until Connor finally came around, looking equally as disillusioned and confused as Kevin had not long ago. "Are you okay?"

It took Connor a while to find his voice before he asked, "What happened? And where the hell are we?"

"The last thing I remember is Barry acting really shifty, apologising to us and then you fell. I woke up here about ten minutes ago. As for where we are, I honestly couldn't tell you, but I know it's Scotland. It says on that newspaper over there." explained Kevin, trying hard to ignore the powerful sensations in his head that were making themselves known every now and again. Unfortunately, the situation they were in didn't give him much to take his mind off it.

"Undo my hands, will you?" said Connor, rather sharply. He winced as the rope came undone, no longer tight around his hands but making sure to rub against his newly sore wrists as it went. He felt as if there was a thunder-storm in his head, the pain accentuated when he tried to scrape the crusty blood from it. Some of it was stuck to his hair, but now wasn't really the time to worry about that. "Have you tried the door?"

"I've been a bit pre-occupied trying to make sure you weren't dead."

"Have you got your phone on you? Go and try the door." Connor didn't know where this authoritative nature was coming from; he'd always been the shy one in most situations. But this wasn't most situations, and taking control helped to stop him drowning in the overwhelming sense of fear he could feel creeping up on him. "I'll try the window."

They didn't even have time to stand up before a new voice was heard. "I wouldn't do that if I were you." The new voice came from a man who couldn't have been more than twenty, but despite looking quite young, he oozed intimidation. His jaw and cheekbones were achingly prominent, making him look almost emaciated. This didn't do anything for his eyes, which looked as if they would pop from their sockets at any moment. He looked utterly terrifying, but oddly familiar.

Connor and Kevin exchanged a worried glance, before retreating back to where they were originally sat.

Kevin spoke first, his voice sounding embarrassingly small. "Who..who are you?"

"That's for me to know, boys."

"Where are we?" This time, it was Connor who asked the question. "What do you want?"

The stranger chuckled. "God, you're a questioning pair, aren't you?" He wandered over to the window, peering out in silence for what seemed like centuries for the petrified teenagers. He pulled out a cigarette box from his jeans, placed one in his mouth and lit it, before finally saying, "This is my mates flat, he's letting me use it for the time being. He should be round soon, actually. Oh, and I've got your phones so don't think you can try and sneakily call the coppers on me. Don't be scared, lads, 'cause as long as you co-operate with me I won't hurt you."

"What do you mean co-operate?" The weird secrecy was frustrating Kevin, and he could feel himself getting angry.

"Yeah, we can't co-operate if we don't know what you want from us."

Their captor flicked the cigarette ash straight onto the floor. "Think of yourselves as real-life blackmail. In a couple of hours, your friends and family will start to worry about you. When they do, I'm going to be sending pictures of you both looking a bit worse for wear to the people closest to you - but I won't be telling them where you are, or releasing you, until Dynasty Barry drops all charges against Steve-O."

Connor and Kevin drank in the information; realisation was not a nice thing sometimes and fury washed over Kevin. There was no way on earth he was going to let this happen, no way. "I won't let you do that to her. I'd rather die before letting that scum-bag walk free."

Quicker than anything, the still unnamed man rained punches onto Kevin's stomach, hard enough so the boy was forced to keel over in pain. "I wasn't finished. What about you, pretty boy? Got anything to say?" He said, walking over to Connor with madness in his eyes. Connor shook his head straight away, feeling ashamed for succumbing to this mentalists reign of terror. "No? Good. After she drops the charges, which she will, you two will drop the charges of blackmail and harassment. Then, and only then, will I let you go.


	5. Chapter 5

AN: Sorry for the ridiculously long time I've taken to update this! I got caught up in college work and stuff, but don't worry, this isn't over yet, I've got a few ideas! Thanks for all the feedback, too. You're all still lovely. There was something going to be on the end of this too, but I left it for next chapter. Anyway, let me know what you think guys!

* * *

The darkening sky was the only way Connor and Kevin could measure the time; they didn't know how long they had been here for, but their rumbling stomachs and the remnants of the melting sun glistening through the crack in the curtain signified at least five or six hours. Strange unnamed captor man hadn't returned since revealing his plans, though they were pretty sure the owner of the flat had turned up when they heard an extra voice outside the room.

"What are we going to do?" Kevin asked suddenly, breaking the silence. "This is serious."

"You don't need to tell me this is serious, mate, I think I know." said Connor, a bit too snappily than he had intended. This whole thing was annoying him greatly; all he wanted from life was a bit of peace. "Sorry. I really don't know what we're going to do if I'm honest. Maybe the police will track whatever phone they use to contact our families back to here?"

The other boy sighed at his friends attempt to clutch at straws. "That only ever happens on television. They'll probably smash the phones up anyway."

"Well, maybe our only hope is Dynasty dropping the charges."

Kevin got to his feet and started pacing, trying to comprehend this whole situation. Dynasty could not drop the charges, there was absolutely no way Kevin would allow that; she had found the courage to tell the police, and that made Kevin prouder than he had ever been in his whole life. She was a truly special girl, a diamond in the rough, and whoever was keeping them here was not going to hurt her all over again. "I said I won't let her do that."

"Not being funny, mate," started Connor, choosing his words carefully. "you might not have a choice."

He stopped pacing. "What?"

"Think about it! Once she finds out where you are, she's going to do whatever it takes to get you back, and you know Dynasty, no-one will change her mind once she's decided. I don't want her to do it, either, no-way do I want him to get away with it but we haven't got any way of telling her not to, have we? And I don't think my mum will let her, anyway."

"Of course your mum will let her, once she realises what's happening to you!" said Kevin, his voice raising in frustration. Not frustration at Connor, just.. frustration.

Connor sighed; he really wasn't sure. All intelligent and rational thoughts had jumbled up in his mind. It couldn't have been longer than a day, yet he was already feeling the effects of being cooped up inside four walls. "I don't know.. she feels really strongly about it. Rape, I mean. It's a long story. Do you reckon they've realised we're gone yet?"

* * *

"He's not answering his phone." Christine sighed. It was nearing eleven pm, and her son was nowhere to be seen. She was collared by two teachers as she was leaving work who told her Connor hadn't turned up to either of their lessons, and even Imogen said she hadn't seen him since English. He couldn't be at her house, not unless Sally Stewart had had a sudden personality transplant, or the schoolhouse, because Maggie would have made him ring home. "What the hell is he playing at?"

Michael flicked the television volume down slightly. "I reckon he's avoiding you."

"Avoiding me?"

"You've not exactly been getting on very well lately." explained Michael, trying his best to reassure her that things were completely fine, though he wasn't very confident with his efforts. "He's probably just trying to get on your nerves. Don't worry about it, he's nearly eighteen. He can take care of himself."

She blinked. He _was_ nearly eighteen, but that wasn't the point. He was still supposed to be living with her, and the least she expected was a phone call or even a text, to set her mind at ease. "Well, it's working. And I'm sorry if we've been arguing at lot, it must be annoying. But he shouldn't have got himself arrested, should he? Or married."

"Why are you so angry about that?" asked Michael, genuinely interested.

"I don't know. I just think he's thrown his life away. He's just a kid and he's tied himself down already." She glanced at the clock, her heart fluttering with worry, despite attempts to tell herself everything was fine. Something felt wrong. "Only Connor could do that. Idiot."

Chuckling, Michael said: "Come on, let's go to bed. He'll be fine, trust me. He'll be at school tomorrow and you can shout at him and laugh at how worried you were tonight." As they began turning things off, placing empty mugs in the sink and checking the locks, a sharp knock came at the door. "Never know, that could be him."

"I have a mind to make him sleep outside, if it is."

Michael went to open the door, and was surprised to see who stood outside, looking a bit worse for wear. "Daniel? Is everything okay?"

Daniel Chalk was panting heavily, giving off the impression that he had ran all the way here. His greying hair was spread haphazardly on his head with a few strands falling down; it must have been obscuring the vision through his glasses, but he didn't brush it away. Instead, he rested briefly against the wall to catch his breath, and pulled a piece of paper from his pocket. "I'm sorry, I know it's but Christine, you really need to see this." Michael beckoned the ex Maths teacher inside. They congregated in the kitchen, where Chalky began smoothing the crumpled document. "I bet I'd be right to say Connor hasn't been home tonight?"

"Yeah.. oh god, you're worrying me now."

"It's just that, well, Kevin didn't come home either. I thought he might have been at the schoolhouse, so I went down to see and when I got back, this had been posted through the door." He laid the paper on the kitchen table, cringing as if it was the first time he had set eyes upon it. "I didn't know what to do. I didn't think telling you over the phone was the best, considering.."

Considering the nature of the imagine, Chalky would've said, if he could have found the words. He felt sick just thinking about it, and by the increasingly pale faces of Christine and Michael, they did, too. The document was blank, except for a large picture plastered across the middle. There was Connor and Kevin, lying unconscious on a floor - or so the three adults hoped. A horrifying amount of blood adorned Connor's forehead, tricking down the side of his face and a large purple bruise was evident around Kevin's eye.

Christine was speechless; Michael took it upon himself to speak. "Who would do that to two kids?"

"I think.. I don't know, if I'm completely honest. They didn't even send a message, just the photo."

"Should we call the police?" said Christine, finally finding her voice. Dizziness swirled uncomfortably in her head as she drank in this turn of events, and started to feel guilty about thinking Connor had stayed out just to annoy her. No-one answered; they were interrupted by a loud beeping noise. Both Christine and Chalky pulled out their phones. One glance was all that was needed to confirm the worst - they had got the same text, and this situation had Steve-O Malone written all over it.

_if you want to see your boy back in one piece, get dynasty barry to drop all charges against steve-o. do it asap. it would be as shame to have to hurt such a gorgeous young lads._


	6. Chapter 6

"This is an incredibly serious situation." Mr Byrne addressed the staffroom the next morning. "If any of you saw Connor Mulgrew or Kevin Chalk leaving school yesterday, you need to let me know. It doesn't matter how trivial it sounds, it really could be the key to us discovering their whereabouts, or their intended whereabouts."

Having explained to the best of his ability, he showed the picture to the wide-eyed teachers. It was conflicting for him; he couldn't let his personal relationship get in the way of his professionalism, and he had to bite his tongue when Christine and Daniel decided not to involve the police until they had spoken to Dynasty and Imogen. It could be the most logical thing to do - there was a possibility that the kidnappers knew what they were doing, and police involvement could potentially endanger them further but doing nothing felt useless.

"Those poor boys." whispered Audrey, rather solemnly.

Tom, in his usual forthright manner, said: "There's some truly sick people out there."

* * *

"You didn't have to do that do him!" Kevin shouted, completely disregarding the fact that these two men could kill him or seriously injure him at any point. To be honest, he didn't care. He'd just witnessed No-Name knock Connor unconscious, for no reason other than him asking whether they had told their families yet. Blood had even managed to spray onto the wall; a constant reminder of their tentatively dangerous position. "He only asked you a question!"

No-Name's friend, the owner of the flat, looked more like a stereotypical criminal. His bulging muscles were defined by colourfully rough tattoos that looked like they had been done by a backstreet crack addict. He was definitely scarier than the other one, but strangely, he gave his name: Dexter. Not really a name that puts the fear of God into you, but still, it was a name. Something they could use against him if they got out. _Wh__en we get out, _Kevin corrected himself.

"I suggest you shut your mouth, unless you want to end up the same way as him. He'll be fine." Dexter said, his voice chillingly casual. "Poor lad can't take a couple of punches, that isn't my problem."

"You're insane."

"Thank-you, mate. I'll take that as a compliment." The psycho began rolling a cigarette. "I'm going to answer his question now, so listen up because I'm only going to say this once. We sent your dad.. is he your dad? That chubby fella. Anyway, we posted a picture of you and your little friend to his flat."

"A picture?"

Dexter looked him directly in the eye, looking almost annoyed that he had been interrupted. "Of when we first brought you here. You're both unconscious, looking a bit rough.. we're hoping, for your sake, that it pulls at Miss Barry's heart strings and she does what we want."

Kevin winced at the mention of Dynasty; it made his heart hurt. He could see her face every time he blinked. He could see the way her face crumbled into misery when he finally realised what Steve-O had done to her.. he remembered their first kiss, and the good kicking he had won afterwards. The memories flooded in, even when he didn't want to remember. It might have only been a day or so, but the thought of never seeing her again was becoming more and more possible. "And what if she doesn't?"

"Then you better brace yourself. Because if you think a few punches are bad, you haven't seen anything yet."

* * *

"Well, what are we waiting for then?" exclaimed Dynasty, the very second she was told what was happening. "I need to get to the police station now!"

Imogen was fighting back the tears. "Have you called the police yet?"

"They should be here soon." said Michael. He had finally convinced the other two adults that it was for the best, that the longer they left it the longer the danger intensifies. Hopefully, the police would know how to get them back because at the moment, the headteacher was completely out of his depth. He had dealt with attempted stabbings, attempted suicide, arson and more, but this was truly frightening. "They will want to speak to you both."

"I'm going to kill Steve-O. Seriously, I'm glad I have to drop the charges because it gives me chance to murder him!" She was standing up now, back to the usual strong-willed girl she was before the attack. "Why can't he just leave me alone?"

"Isn't there another way?" asked Imogen. Her voice was quiet; she felt like this wasn't her place. This was clearly about Dynasty, and she didn't want to interfere, but she had been called here anyway. Seeing Connor like that, hurt, wasn't nice.

Christine narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, I wan't to get them back just as much as you lot do, but surely the police can find them without Dynasty having to drop the charges? None of us want Steve-O walking the streets again."

Daniel, having been lost in thought until now, said: "She's got a point."

Before anyone else could review the statement, a knock on the door from Sonya signified the police's arrival. Two fully dressed officers entered Michael's office and introduced themselves as DI Banks, a woman officer, and DI Brown, male. They got down to the formalities as soon as possible.

"Okay, so. The boys are seventeen, yeah?" The woman spoke; the other took notes. "They were last seen in a lesson, your lesson, Mrs Mulgrew?" Christine nodded, mentally cursing herself for not being able to remember whether they looked shifty or not. "None of you have any idea where they could have been going?"

"Look, can we just cut the crap?" Dynasty was getting more than frustrated now. "We know it's something to do with Steve-O! Why else would they say they want me to drop the charges? All the time you're asking us pointless questions our boyfriends are getting the shit kicked out of them!"

"Ms Barry, if we can just ask you to calm down. We know this is a stressful situation for you all.."

"Stressful?" She nearly laughed, it was such an understatement. "Do you want to know what stressful is? I'll tell you what's being going on in my life lately. My ex-boyfriend was blackmailing Kevin and Connor, and I didn't know about it. Then, he rapes me and when I finally pluck up the courage to go and tell the police, I find them both being arrested because Steve-O held a gun to them! Oh, yeah, and if you think all that is a lot to go through.. I went home, to find my mum on the phone to Steve-O's mum, _apologising _for me!"

Christine hadn't known that last part. _Poor girl_, she thought. "Dynasty, we know it's been a horrible couple of weeks for you, but if this is the way we have to do it, then we have to go along with it."

Chalky had been silent for some time, only speaking when he was asked something by the police officers. For the past couple of seconds, he had been staring at his phone, not knowing how to react. "Excuse me.."

"Yes, Mr Chalk?" DI Banks asked.

"It's my phone. It's ringing."

"Yeah, that's normally what phones do, Sir." Dynasty cut, the sarcasm dripping of her tongue.

"It's Kevin."

* * *

It was as if something in him snapped. All fear dissolved with one glance at his sleeping, bruised face. Kevin summoned all the courage and energy he could find, grabbed the unplugged lamp from the corner and with one massive blow, struck Dexter round the back of the head when he wasn't looking. It was the maddest thing he had ever done, and the adrenaline rush was immense.

He didn't have time for that though. He had to act quickly. No-Name could be back any second, so he propped a chair up under the door and went back to Dexter. What he should have done, Kevin realised when it was too late, was tried to wake Connor up, or dragged him out into the street and shout for help._ I guess I'm not a genius after all_, Kevin would regretfully think later.

What he did do, though, was steal his phone back. The captors were clearly idiots - keeping the phones in their own pockets. Yeah, clever.

"Chalky? Listen. I haven't got long. He's going to wake up any second and he's going to be so mad so you have to find us, _please. _I haven't got a clue where we are but it's definitely Scotland, not that that helps."

"_Kevin, calm down. The police are with us, you're on speaker phone. Are you okay?" _

"I'm fine, a couple of bruises, it's nothing."

"_What about Connor?" _

"He's.. he's unconscious. He has been for a couple of hours.. they beat him up, right in front of me, they beat him unconscious." The tears were welling in Kevin's eyes and the lump in his throat was thickening his voice, but he couldn't panic. This was his chance to get free. "He's going to be okay. Tell Miss not to worry because I'm going to look after him, he's my best friend, I'm going to look after him."

"_Okay, Kevin, my name is DI Banks. Can you describe your surroundings? Is there a window?" _

Dexter made a noise, and Kevin's heart almost burst out of his ribs. "I'm not sure where we are. I think it's just a housing estate. Look, I think he's waking up. His name is Dexter, he owns the flat. The other one hasn't give us his name but I know they're friends of Steve-O's. I have to go."

_"Don't hang up the phone. Hide it, but don't hang up. We'll try and track it down, okay? Don't worry, we'll find you." _

"Yeah, it's rather hard not to worry when Connor looks half dead and we're in the clutches of two psychopaths! There's one more thing. Dynasty, are you there?"

"_Yeah, I'm here." _

"Please don't drop the charges." He took a deep breath, eyes safely on Dexter's limp body. "I love you so much."


	7. Chapter 7

The police officers left immediately, explaining that this was now a case of high importance and the sooner they could get back to the station to attempt to track the phone call, the better. No-one remaining in the office knew what to say; all that could be heard over the deafening silence was the quiet sobs coming from the two teenager girls. Dynasty had been thinking, though, and she had an idea.

"Sir?" She cringed at the sound of her voice, altered by the lump in her throat. "Could you get me brother down here?"

* * *

Bolts of pain thundered through his head every couple of minutes, and it made him feel the rushed phone call was hardly worth it, especially now the phone was being smashed to pieces right in front of them. Dexter's reaction was mild compared to what Kevin had expected, but he felt incredibly guilty about one thing; Connor came back to conciousness the same time as the flat owner, so ended up bearing the brunt of his anger, too.

"You two just don't get it, do you?" He snarled, towering over them, eyes sparkling with rage. "Where's the phone?"

Connor, still disorientated, warily whispered to Kevin: "I reckon you've just made things a whole lot worse for us, mate."

"You'd reckon right, pretty boy."

"Oh, shut up!" shouted Kevin, the intense bravery he found earlier surging back to him. "It's under the pillow, over there. It doesn't matter what you do to it, or us, because the police will be able to track it. You can beat us up, you can even kill us if that makes you happy, but the police will find you. You won't get away with it, and you will rot in jail with your best pal Steve-O, because that's where you both belong!"

And Kevin barely had time to catch his breath before the fist flew.

* * *

The protective brother hidden inside Barry Barry automatically switched on as soon as he saw his little sisters red-rimmed eyes and tear-stained cheeks. He glanced round nervously at the teachers, wondering what he could have possibly been caught out for but noticing Mr Chalk, sat on one of the chairs next to Mrs Mulgrew, it hit him. "Dynasty? Have you been crying?"

"Shut up." said Dynasty, rather snappily. She stood up and grabbed the photograph from the table. "Do you know about this? And if you lie to me, I swear to God I'll kill you."

If he didn't have such a solid reputation to keep, the eldest Barry would have paled at the sight of the two boys covered in blood. In all honesty, this whole situation scared him, and that didn't happen much. They had only been at the docks in the first place because he was too much of a coward to get his own back on Steve-O by himself; he used them as scapegoats. "Is that.. Connor and Kevin?"

Christine said: "We think they have been taken by some of Steve-O's friends, trying to get revenge." The last word spiralled off her tongue, full of bitterness.

He sighed, closing his eyes for a split second.. and in doing so, subconsciously admitted knowledge to the sister who knows him too well.

"You do know something, don't you! Tell me."

He weighed it up in his mind. Tell his obviously terrified little sister where her boyfriend is, potentially save the lives of two fairly innocent boys or confess his limited knowledge and face up to the mess he was going to be in. "Look, I'm sorry, yeah?"

That was too much for Dynasty. She tried to convince herself that, for once, Barry might not be involved. Fury overtaking her, she ran over to him and starting raining half-hearted punches down on him. "You idiot! Why are you always involved?"

When Dynasty was gently pulled away by Christine, Barry took a deep breath. "I don't know where they are or anything, and I never knew this was going to happen!" He gestured to the picture, still in his hand. "A couple of days after Steve-O got locked up, I got a phone call from his brother, Nicky. You know who I'm on about, Dyn?"

"Yeah. He's a head-case. What about him?"

"He came up to Scotland the day you had Steve-O arrested. When he found out, he went mental. I only told him Kevin and Connor were involved because he was going to come round the house and try and get you to change your statement and all that, but I knew you didn't need him getting at you, so I said it was the lads' fault." All eyes were on him, and the majority of them were glaring. All pairs except the ever neutral Michael Byrne. "Nicky made me text them from my phone, getting them to come to the docks. He hit them over the head and then I left. That's all I know, I swear."

Mr Byrne, having heard the full story, finally let his emotions show. "You let him attack and kidnap them? Barry, that's low, even for you."

That angered him. "You have no idea, do you? Not even you, Dyn. I know what he's done to you, and he deserves to be in prison, I don't disagree with you, but do you know what it's like to try and please everyone? Steve-O looked out for Dad when they were inside together, he's done a lot for our family and I couldn't be seen to be throwing that back in his face. He's still got mates inside, he could of got Dad in some serious shit! I'm sorry for what he's done to you, I should never have let that happen, and I'm sorry for letting Nicky take the lads but there's nothing I can do. I thought he would just rough them up a bit, give them a bit of a scare!"

Dynasty sat down, feeling completely drained. She was only just getting over the rape, flourishing in her lovely relationship with her lovelier boyfriend, and now this. She knew how important Steve-O was to the family, and how intimidating he could be, even to someone as strong as her brother. "Can you get them back? Please, Barry. Kevin said they were in Scotland, and the flat owner's called Dexter. There's only so many places they could be."

"I could ring Nicky. Try and get something out of him, but if I do find anything out... you didn't find out from me, do you know what I mean?" Part of him couldn't believe his own actions. He was about to become everything he hated - a potential grass. The other part, though, wanted to see his sister happy and if that meant family loyalty came before 'friends', then so be it.

He pulled his phone out of his pocket.

"That should be in storage." said Michael, automatically.

"Do you want me to ring or not? Because as much as I feel sorry for them, I really don't want to be doing this." Barry threw back, scrolling through his contacts, finding Nicky Malone, taking a deep breath, and secretly hoping there would be no answer.

His hoping failed. He answered.

_"Barry?" _The voice crackled through the speaker phone. _"What's up, mate?" _

"Nothing, nothing, everything's good." The first lie of many to come, Barry suspected. "Where you staying, like? Didn't really have much chance to speak to you the other day, it was all a bit rushed."

_"Are you with the cops?" _

"Don't be daft. What do you think I am, a grass? I'm just wondering." He glanced over at Dynasty, who looked to be hanging on every word. Imogen looked disgusted by the mere sound of the kidnappers voice, and Christine, Daniel and Michael were listening intently. "So, er, you got a flat or something?"

_"I'm kipping with that Dexter fella. He's helping me out with getting me brother out of jail. When's your sister going to drop the charges, mate? These lads are doing my head in." _

"Are they okay? I mean, you haven't done anything mental to them, have you?"

_"Couple of beatings, here and there." _Even Barry felt ill at the chillingly casual delivery of that sentence. "_What do you care?" _

"No, no, I don't, why would I? I'm just saying, don't hurt them. What's the point in getting Steve-O out if you're going to go straight inside?" This wasn't getting anywhere, but delving straight into awkward questions would only rouse suspicion.

_"It isn't my fault they can't take a couple of punches. I know their type. They focus more on their hair and getting girls than being tough. They're not like us, mate. I don't know why you're bothered." _

"I'm not bothered! Do what you like, I couldn't give a shit about those little weeds." Barry looked up at the teachers, winking cheekily to let them know he wasn't being serious. "Listen, why don't you let me come up there? I'll talk to them. We need to get them to drop the harassment charges, and they're not going to do that if you're beating them up round the clock. I know what gets under their skin. Honestly, mate, text me the address and I'll come down there. Five minutes with me and they'll be down that station changing their statements."

_"Why do you think you'll do a better job than me, like?" _

"I don't!" Frustrated, Barry had to stop himself from hanging the phone up. He had made progress and looking over at Dynasty, huddled next to Imogen with tears gleaming in her eyes, he knew he couldn't let her down now. "I just know them, don't I? Text me the address and I swear I'll have this over with and Steve-O out within days."

_"Fine. I'll text you it now." _The inhabitants of the offices hearts simultaneously jumped; could they really allow themselves to raise their hopes, when they could be shattered at any minute. They were talking about criminals here. _"But I swear to God, Barry, if you're with the coppers I'll kill you." _

It was the second death threat Barry Barry had received today, but as he ended the call and opened the incoming text complete with the address needed to make his sister happy, he felt good; the goodness intensified by the warm hug he found himself on the receiving end from. Dynasty's wild curls tickled his face, but he embraced the hug and let the erratic beat of his heart slow. For once, he was going to try and be the good guy.

* * *

AN: Not sure about how I ended that. Too cheesy? Sorry if you think it was!

So, No-Name has been unmasked - Nicky Malone! Let me know what you think of this chapter. I know there was a lack of Connor/Kevin, but I ended up doing this whole chapter a different way to how I intended it to be. Hope it worked!

Thank you for all the reviews and reads, I think we can all agree that you are the best.

And, this wasn't even meant to be as long as seven chapters! It started off as a bit of a one-shot, but I'm glad you're all enjoying it anyway! xx


	8. Chapter 8

It took strength not to start shaking, and even more strength not to punch a wall; Nicky Malone was absolutely maddeningly furious. People could say a lot about him, and he'd heard them all - head-case, mental, criminal, a lost cause - but the one thing he wouldn't be called was stupid. And if Barry Barry thought he was going to fall for his little school-boy trick, well, he had better prepare himself for the storm heading his way.

"What are you going to do then?" Dexter whispered to his friend, hoping to keep their conversation away from the prying ears of their two captives, but as Connor and Kevin were already wondering if they should let themselves hope that Barry could actually have been with the police, they listened intently to anything they could hear.

The elder Malone brother sighed, and snapping out of his thoughts, he turned around and said: "You two. Wipe the blood from your faces, go with Dexter and get in the car."

They glanced at each other uneasily. Kevin asked, "Why? Where are we going?"

"I never did get my GCSE's." Nicky grinned, a plan clearly formulating in his head. "I think it's time I went back to school."

* * *

By the time the car with the blacked-out windows pulled up to Waterloo Road, the sky was darkening and the students had gone home. Connor and Kevin had no idea what was happening, going along with it purely out of fear. Throughout this whole ordeal, the only thing they had the power to do to get one over on these creeps was to stay strong, and put up the barriers against anything that was thrown at them, but recently, it had started to disappear bit by bit; now they were at school, the feeling something bad could happen to the ones they love the most was intensifying.

"There's no-one here." said Connor. "I don't get it."

Dexter was in the driving seat. He opened the door and got out, as did Nicky. "We've got some calls to make. You'll understand soon, boys. This ends tonight."

The doors slammed shut and the two of them went over to the school gates, leaving Connor and Kevin alone in the car. "Do you think he means it?" asked Kevin, nervousness bubbling in his stomach.

"What?"

"I mean, do you think we'll get away from them tonight?"

"I don't know." Connor sighed, wishing he knew the answer. He wanted to see Imogen; he wanted to wrap his arms around her and never let her go. It had only been a couple of days, but his heart fluttered every time he imagined their reunion. It wouldn't be overly romantic, like on the cringe-worthy american films, but it would be perfect. He even missed his mum a little bit; he was hoping with all his might that this hadn't made her want to drink again. "They're not going to stop until Steve-O's out, are they? I know one thing though. I can't go back to that flat. One more punch and I'll have brain damage."

"We're not going back to that flat. I'm telling you, whatever happens tonight, there is no way we are going anywhere with them." His tone was typically Kevin, his constant sense of righteous indignation seeping through the cracks. All this trouble had been caused by his relationship with Dynasty, and he still wouldn't lose her, not even with a gun to his head. "We could make a run for it?"

"They've locked the doors, they're not stupid. And anyway, we'd get to the bottom of the road, they'd catch us and beat us half to death. No thank-you."

"You're so pessimistic."

Connor chuckled half-heartedly, the first time in the last couple of days. "Well, sorry for not being a ray of sunshine, but we're still kidnapped and my head hurts."

* * *

Barry ran an exasperated hand through his hair, closing his eyes in the hope of a minutes peace. Dynasty had been constantly on at him all night, asking what he was going to do, when he was going to do it, if he would be safe, if the boys would be safe - truthfully, he had no answer to any of them. The last thing he wanted to do was be a grass, but having the address saved safely in his phone, it gave him a weird sense of power. He had the power to give it to the police, to get Nicky arrested.. but he also had the power to keep it to himself. His phone vibrated.

_NM: I've got something for you. Meet me at your school asap? _

_BB: What type of something? _

_NM: Those lads you seem so concerned about. Saved you a trip. So get your arse down here now, Barry. _

This was all he needed. Something seemed way too suspicious about this; there was no way Nicky would risk bringing the lads to the _school _of all places! And all the people troubling Barry to save the day - Mrs Mulgrew, Mr Byrne, Mr Chalk, Imogen and Dynasty - they didn't seem to realise that this could catapult him into all sorts of messes that he really didn't want to be in. Cursing himself for getting involved, he sat up and pulled on his boots.

_BB: Way too much CCTV at WR, mate. What about the docks instead? _

_NM: Fine. Get there asap, and bring your sister._

_There is no-way on earth I'm taking Dynasty_, thought Barry. He sent a fairly neutral reply, and made a decision: he wasn't going to grass, but he was going to sort this out. On his own.

* * *

AN: This was supposed to be longer than planned, but instead I'm going to have the next chapter be where everything kicks off. Does that make sense? Oh, I don't know, haha. So yeah, as a result, it makes this chapter look a bit like a filler.

Filler or not, hope you enjoyed! Next chapter will be up asap. And thanks for the lovely reviews as per, they truly make my day. X


	9. Chapter 9

AN: I really need to start planning my chapters because as usual, this has turned out completely different to what I was thinking. I'm not entirely sure about it, but I like parts of it, so it'll do. So this is it, climax, or whatever.. part of it.

I'll try and update faster, too. I break up from college in a couple of days so, yeah.

Oh and after this chapter, and the fall-out ect from it is over.. would you want me to do Steve-O's actual trial? Because obviously that's what I initially intended to do with it, hence the title. But I ended up doing something well different. But if anyone would be interested in it, I'd do it! I might still do it, anyway. I don't know. Enough from me :-)

Enjoy! X

* * *

_He's a scum-bag. That's all he is. He's a scum-bag just like his brother, and you don't owe him anything. _The chant danced around Barry's mind like a broken record. It was a feeble attempt to motivate himself, but it was frustrating: he was Barry Barry. He shouldn't need to have to build up his confidence or even feel the slightest bit of fear. People feared him, as a rule. _He's a scum-bag. That's all he is. _It was working. Memories flooded into his brain, though he didn't want any distractions, he wanted focus.

There was a little Barry and a little Dynasty, and they're playing in a garden. By all accounts, this garden in particular doesn't look very child friendly. The fence is broken and the grass, sparkling with dew, almost towered over them. They didn't care though, because it was a jungle, a jungle full of magical creatures and adventures to experience. Barry remembers his mother and father sat on sun loungers, and walking and remembering, a strange tingling sensation ran down his spine. _Happiness. _That's what it was. His parents happy, picking out names for the impending new baby; Dynasty happy, full of childish innocence.. it was a good job no-one could read minds, because he would have cringed. _Focus, _he told himself, _Steve-O broke your sister. He's a scum-bag, and so is his brother. _

And then he was at the warehouse. He entered, leaving his doubts safely outside.

"Hello?" His gorgeously strong accent echoed in the emptiness, bouncing off the walls. "Nicky, you here mate?"

"Over here!" A voice shouted, only vaguely recognisable as the man he was looking for. "If you've brought coppers or anyone, I _will_ kick the shit out of you."

Ignoring his minds pleas to turn around, go home and stop getting involved, Barry followed the voice. "Of course I haven't brought anyone. You think I'd do anything for the cops, after what they did to me dad?" He reached them, and was about to say, "See?" when his breath caught in the back of his throat.

It wasn't nice. Connor's face had been kindly decorated with a sore-looking gash at the corner of his mouth, and a yellowing bruise surrounding one of his eyes; his pale skin looked to be nearing transparent, and he was quite clearly in more of a state than Kevin. Kevin didn't looked great but more angry than anything. None of this, though, was the reason Barry was shocked. It was the gun, pointed at Connor and Kevin, that shocked him, disgustingly so.

"What are you doing, man?" said Barry, tactically neutral. "What's with the gun?"

The smirk plastered on Nicky's face was chilling. "I'm not going to be taken for a mug. I don't appreciate being called stupid."

The poor lads looked genuinely terrified, and for the first time since all this kicked off, the fear seeping through his barriers was real. This wasn't a game any more, it wasn't a laugh. This really could end badly. "They're just kids, mate. Mouthy little teenagers, you shouldn't let them get to you!"

"You're right, they are mouthy. But I wasn't talking about them. You see, I gave my brother a call the other day, see hows he's getting on and that. You know, because your sister got him banged up."

"Oh yeah. How's he doing, alright?"

"He'd be doing a lot better if you hadn't set him up."

Barry paled. Instinctively, his defensive nature prevailed. "What? Did they tell you that?" he said, glancing over at Connor and Kevin, wondering how it was possible to feel simultaneously sorry for them and furious at them at the same time. He was bending over backwards, sticking his neck out on line even just to come here, and they grassed.

For the first time since Barry had arrived, Kevin spoke, his tone full of that usual fury. "We didn't say anything!"

"Don't speak." The gun-wielder snapped, icily.

"No! I'm sick of this. We've been dragged from pillar to post, beaten black and blue, all because you have weird power complex! If you want your brother out of jail so badly, you should have taught him not to force himself onto girls!" His anger was in full flare now. Not even the threat of a loaded gun in front of him could calm him. The thought of seeing Dynasty again was too intensely good to stop, and even if he was to die here, at least Steve-O would remain in jail.

"Kevin, he's got a gun. How about you just keep your mouth shut for five seconds, yeah?" hissed Connor. If it wasn't such a tentative situation, Barry might have chuckled at the change in personality of the boy. He had always been fairly quiet, even when he was secretly starting fires all over the school. They got on quite well over the brief period of time that Connor was in the PRU, though.

It seemed Nicky's patience was running low, as he cocked the back of the weapon in his hand. "If you two don't shut up, right now, I swear I'll pull the trigger."

"Listen, mate, this whole thing is daft-" The desperation in Barry's tone was becoming clear.

"No, you listen. I'm going to tell you what to do, and you're going to do it, without question. First of all, you're going to get your sister to drop all charges against my brother."

Kevin rolled his eyes, bitterly. "Change the record! How many times do I have to tell you? She won't do it. I told her not to." He should have expected it really. This time, it wasn't a fist. The butt of the gun smashed into the side of his face, knocking him from his feet. Ever the unaffected, Kevin immediately stood back up, spat blood on the floor, and said: "Steve-O won't get out of jail. He won't."

"Stop it."

"You can beat us up, you can even kill us if that satisfies your sick craving, but it won't make you or your brother-"

"I said, STOP IT!" A deafening roar ripped through the atmosphere; a crack.

And then a scream.


	10. Chapter 10

The world darkened. His eyelids dragged themselves down against his will; the voices grew cloudy, a jumble of faint sounds in his mind. It was a pain like no other he'd felt before, though as the minutes passed, the agony intensified so much that the wound started to feel numb.

"Stay awake!" One of the voices pleaded. "Come on, keep your eyes open mate!"

Another voice sounded a little more frightened. "Hello? I need an ambulance, like, right now. The docks. My friend has been shot."

The pleas for him to stay awake were getting quieter now, as the numbness faded away. Groaning in unimaginable discomfort, he succumbed to the blackness.

* * *

Waiting is pretty unbearable, as it goes, but waiting in an empty hospital for news on your friends condition after a shooting is worse. Kevin Chalks nails were now almost non-existent due to nervous chewing, and the intense atmosphere couldn't even be broken by small talk, either. The only other person in the room was Barry Barry, brooding angrily in the corner.

The minutes passed as slowly as hours, with no news at all coming from the doctors and nurses who passed. The silence was excruciating, making Kevin all the more grateful when the door to the waiting room burst open. Daniel entered first, followed by Christine, both looking weary and flustered.

"Kevin!" shouted Daniel, pulling the lad into a well-overdue hug. "Are you okay? Look at the state of you! We've all been so worried... what's going on? Where's Connor?"

Kevin looked at Barry. "I thought you told them? I told you to tell them!"

"This is your mess, not mine." said Barry, though he looked uncharacteristically shaken. "You tell them."

"One of you, tell us." said Christine. "Tell us!"

"Miss, I'm so sorry... but, erm, the man who kidnapped us.. he had a gun. We were down at the docks and.."

"And what?"

"And Connor got shot."

When the police seemed to have no idea how to get the boys back, Christine thought it couldn't really get any worse. She was wrong. Hands beginning to shake, she took a seat and said: "Is.. is he going to be okay?"

"They haven't really told us much." Kevin explained. "They just rushed him in and told us to wait here."

Chalky noticed a tear rolling down the English teachers cheek, and immediately sat down and put an arm around her. He couldn't decide which of the thousands of questions floating around in his head to ask. "But what happened? Why were you at the docks? And how the _hell _do two seventeen year old boys get kidnapped? You only ever see that sort of stuff in the films!"

"It was Steve-O's brother. Thought taking us would make Dynasty change her mind about pressing charges, and wanted us to drop the charges of harassment, as well." The anger that was constant but hidden in Kevin was surfacing again. "It's all that idiots fault." he spat, gesturing to Barry, who glanced up with annoyance when he realised he was being discussed.

"If this is anyone's fault, it's that mouth of yours! If you had kept quiet and let me deal with Nicky, instead of getting cocky, your little mate wouldn't be in a hospital bed right now!" The time spent brooding miserably in the waiting room had destroyed his patience. It meant he had time to dwell on things - to dwell on the fact that Nicky managed to escape before the police arrived. He needed to call Dynasty. He needed to make sure she was safe. And most of all, he needed to get out of here before the police came to interview Kevin, and Connor when he came to consciousness; there was no way he could get involved with that side of things.

"You could have brought the police with you! If you had more than half a brain cell, you would have brought them with you. Connor would be fine and Nicky wouldn't be god knows where, would he?" The words fell from his mouth in a pool of bitterness. "You think of yourself as this big criminal mastermind. You're not. You're just a waste of space!"

That was it. Barry stood up, honoured Kevin with yet another punch, and left. The boy hardly felt the blow; after the past couple of days, he was used to it. All he was focused on now was his injured friend, and wondering when he would be able to see Dynasty.

"That boy needs to learn to control his temper." mumbled Chalky.

"He's right, though."

"About what?" asked Christine; the tears had dried up, and the strong façade she wore whenever something like this happened was back on.

He took a deep breath, trying to fight back the tears that burned in the back of his own eyes. "It was my fault. All of this is my fault. Connor would never been at the docks in the first place, he was only there trying to look out for me, and look where that got him, a cell!"

The teenagers unadulterated fury at himself sparked the teachers quickly sparked the teachers' sympathies. "Kevin-"

"At the flat, it was Connor who got the worst of it. He was unconscious more than he was conscious, and again, it was me who was getting cocky, it was me they were angry at! He was asleep when I called you, he had nothing to do with it. He got the brunt of that psycho's anger, though. And then he got shot! It's all my fault, and if he dies," said Kevin, his voice cracking, strained with sadness. "if anything happens to him, I'll never forgive myself."

"Kevin, stop it. Just stop it." The English teacher commanded. "Listen to me. My son is an idiot. You are an idiot. Barry is an idiot. No-one is to blame here, but Steve-O and his brother, but they will get what they deserve. Connor will be fine, he's always fine, he just likes to keep us waiting. I don't want to hear any more of whose fault it is. Now, you need to get those cuts and bruises checked over.

* * *

AN: Considering how long I've taken to update this chapter is ridiculously short. I apologise.. next chapter will be Kevin/Dynasty reunion, and possibly Connor/Imogen if the poor lad wakes up. I couldn't decide who to have shot so I went with him 'cos he never has an easy ride of it, does he? Haha.

Anyway. Series finale was top, but so sad! Poor Tom! Remember watching the very first series with him in!

Oh yeah and to the Guest who reviewed the last chapter - the fact that you had a dream about this story is unbelievably amazing! Tell me more!

Hope you enjoy Xx


	11. Chapter 11

Kevin couldn't sleep. He tried and tried, but he refused to leave the hospital until they got news and the plastic chairs in the waiting room were horribly uncomfortable. _Strange_, he thought, considering a hospital waiting room is a place where people could use a bit of comfort. Nevertheless, he rested his aching head against the wall and closed his eyes. It was no use - despite feeling completely exhausted, the only sleep the boy got was tainted by nightmares. The misery experienced over the past couple of days was exacerbated by the dreams. It was as if every punch, every kick and every threat was intensified, and the strong façade he wore when trying to stand up to the captors had melted away. There was no hope, no way of escaping.

But it was just a dream.

The voice was recognisable, so much so that it sent nervous butterflies off in his stomach. "Kevin?"

_Please let this be real. Don't let this be a dream. _Kevin opened his eyes, blinked, and smiled. It was real. "Dynasty!" There was a dizziness in his head from standing up too quickly, but it didn't matter. He threw his arms around his girlfriend, the fire that fuelled his strength these last few days, and stayed there in the embrace for what seemed like hours. "I've missed you so much."

Dynasty's voice was muffled, but clearly strangled with tears. "I missed you, as well. I thought I'd lost ya!"

They finally broke apart. Kevin kissed her lightly, and said: "It's over now, I guess." He sighed; he was happier, though. "We just need Connor to get better, and then we can have a normal life. I think we deserve it, don't you?"

"A normal life? Like, a normal relationship?" She laughed, taking Kevin's hand in hers and sitting down with him. "Does that even exist?

"No. Not for us anyway." He grinned, despite himself. They sat in silence for a few moments, enjoying each others company. A reunion in a hospital might not sound the most romantic thing in the world, but this was Dynasty Barry and Kevin Chalk, the couple people still looked at as odd. After everything they'd been through in their short time together, this was perfect. "Oh.. has anyone told Imogen?"

"Mrs Mulgrew gave her a ring, I think."

"Have you heard anything? I think I must have fell asleep." Right on cue, Kevin tried and failed to stifle a yawn. He needed his bed.. but where should he go? Chalky would have to go back to London soon; sleeping in the flat where his girlfriend was attacked was a complete no, and he was pretty sure Dynasty wouldn't want to step foot in there ever again. There was the school-house to go back to, but Maggie didn't need his problems on top of her own.

"Come on." Dynasty ordered, with a gentleness in her usually loud voice. "We'll go see him. The doctors haven't said much but told us in so many words that he's out of danger. And if we go and see him, you might actually stop blaming yourself and _smile!" _Playfully, she pulled Kevin so he was standing, and locked him in a passionate, well-overdue kiss.

* * *

The silence was deafening; eventually, the beeping of the machinery fades into the background, and there's nothing left but pure, unadulterated silence. At first, Christine enjoyed the silence in her sons hospital room but once Chalky decided to go and get coffee and check on Kevin, it was quite painful. All the thoughts she didn't want to think were flooding into her mind all at once. She wondered, as anyone would do, if he was going to be okay. She wondered how on earth she didn't realise how much trouble he was in with Steve-O in the first place. Michael got it out of him, and she didn't even realise. She had even simply brushed it off as him not being a morning person when Michael mentioned he seemed distant.

_Stop. _Christine thought to herself. She couldn't start blaming herself, because it would undoubtedly lead to her looking down the end of an empty bottle. And that wouldn't help anyone, least of all her injured seventeen year old son. _It wasn't your fault. _She stood up and went out into the corridor, the room suddenly becoming unbearable.

"Imogen?"

Imogen was sat on a chair outside of Connor's room, next to a coffee machine. Her usually pale skin made her look ill, like she should be in a hospital bed, and it was clear she had been crying. The rims around her eyes were tinged crimson, though her cheeks were dry. She didn't say anything.

Christine sat down next to her. "What are you doing out here, love? You should have just came in."

"I didn't know if I could.. or if you wanted me to or.." The nervous stutter in her voice wasn't down to her boyfriend lying in a hospital bed. Imogen still felt quite awkward around Connor's mum in situations that didn't take place in an English classroom; they had both said some things to each other in the past that weren't particularly friendly. "I mean.."

"You think I'm angry about the wedding, don't you?"

Imogen simply nodded, tucking her feet in under the chair so as not to trip up passers by.

"Look, I can't say I was happy about it, but you've done it, and there's nothing I can do about it. All I can do is hope you two have made the right decision, and that it's not all going to end in tears."

Unconvinced, Imogen said: "It wasn't planned, you know. I mean.. it was, but we weren't going to do it this quick."

Christine saw Chalky walking towards them, and smiled gratefully when she noticed the two plastic cups in his hand. "Imogen, you don't have to explain yourself to me. I want Connor to be happy, and if him being happy means him getting married at 17, then okay. You do need to tell your mum, though. You can't keep it from her forever."

"I know. I suppose there's one good thing about all of this." said Imogen with the hint of laugh in her throat, gesturing over to her boyfriends room. "My mum can't put him in hospital if he's already here."

* * *

AN: So I know nothing much happened in this, and it's quite short, but hey. It's warm, haha.

I think there's going to be 3, maybe 4 more chapters until this is finished. Unless I think of something to add to it. (If you have any suggestions I'd be glad to read them!)

Thanks for the lovely reviews. Enjoy :-)


	12. Chapter 12

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Kevin asked his girlfriend nervously; he'd lost count of the amount of times he'd rephrased the question, never entirely accepting her answer. "I'll come with you if you like. I just.. do you really want to see him again?"

Dynasty sighed softly in frustration. Of course Kevin wouldn't understand; who would? Her idea would only seem appealing to people who shared her experience, and even some people in the same situation might think she was putting herself through avoidable heartache. She wanted to do it, though, and no-one was going to stop her. "I'm sure, Kevin. Facing him will end it all. I don't want to say closure 'cos I'll just make meself cringe, but you know what I mean, yeah?"

The two of them were sitting on some tables in one of the empty classrooms, with Imogen. It had been over a week since the shooting at the docks, but Kevin insisted he was going back to school. Chalky couldn't persuade him otherwise, even getting the schools trauma counsellor to have words with him about the dangers of being flippant about what he had been through.

Imogen was sipping from a half-empty bottle of water and flicking idly through her notes for next lesson. She glanced up at the couple, confusion written all over her face. "Don't you need one of those visiting order things?"

The blonde girl looked sheepish. "I applied for one ages ago. The day we found out you and Connor were missing."

"_What_?"

"Oh, don't start, I'm not in the mood." Dynasty stood up and pulled her blazer straight. She started fiddling with the bits of her hair that had fell out of the bun, silent until she realised her boyfriend and best friend were waiting for an explanation. "I thought I could talk to him, get him to talk to his brother. I thought I could do it meself because the police weren't doing anything and you lot said I shouldn't drop the charges! It came through the night Connor got shot so there was no point.. but I'm not going to let it go to waste."

Kevin wasn't annoyed, not at Dynasty. He was annoyed at himself. Annoyed that he had been so stupid to go down to the docks the day he was kidnapped, annoyed that Connor took most of the punches at the flat and ended up in a hospital bed.. but most of all, he was angry that they were still talking about Steve-O, still acknowledging his existence. "Fine."

"You'll shut up about it, then?"

"I don't like it. But when do you ever listen to me?"

A grin flashed over Dynasty's face then, and the nerves she'd been trying to tuck to the back of her mind finally disappeared. She kissed him gently, a hand running through the back of his hair as she did. "You don't have to worry. There'll be loads of police around, he can't hurt me again." Her smile faltered but reappeared almost as soon as it went. Tactfully, she changed the subject and turned to Imogen. "Are you going to see Connor tonight?

"Yeah, I think so."

"How's he doing?"

"He's different." There was a quietness to the girls voice that Dynasty only remembered hearing during the weeks after the fire, when they first met and initially disliked each other. They were different people back then, and had been through so much since. "It's like he's angry.. and obviously, he's allowed to be. He got _shot. _I don't know. He's alive, that's all I care about."

A shrill bell notified the three of them that their free period was over. With a small groan, they slung their bags over their shoulders and went out into a babble of students; year sevens with huge backpacks and excited voices and bored older students with folders full of coursework spilling out of their arms. There had been a lot of changes to Waterloo Road recently; after the narrow miss of going private, there was now a new head and a new deputy.

Noticing Mrs Mulgrew walking towards them, Dynasty told Imogen she'd catch up with her. "Miss! Have you got a sec?"

It was clear the strain was getting to the newly appointed head-teacher. Although the majority of the school thought she was doing great, the bags under her eyes said different. Of course, her son narrowly escaped being murdered last week, so there was that. Christine looked quite startled when she heard someone calling her but realising who it was said: "Oh, hello Dynasty. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. Everything's fine. I just.. wanted a bit of advice."

"Well that's not something I get asked for regularly! How can I help?"

Dynasty bit her lip. This woman had helped her so much, what if she thought she was throwing it all back in her face by going to the prison? Deep down she knew she was being irrational but there was a nagging thought that was constantly telling her that this was the wrong decision. "Thing is.. I'm going to the prison tonight. I'm going to see Steve-O."

"Well," The teacher started; she wasn't expecting that, and she was unsure she was in the right frame of mind to give this sort of counsel. "that's brave."

"Kevin thinks I'm stupid. He doesn't understand, but I thought you might.. I mean, wouldn't you want to ask _why_ if you had the chance?"

Christine's eyes fell to the floor. She didn't have that chance. Not even after it happened, and she was forced to see him at family events and visits with Joe. A couple of weeks later the blue lines showed up on the pregnancy test and their relationship disintegrated with magnificent speed. "Yes. Yes, you're right. If this is what you want to do, then I say go for it. Do one thing, though?" She rested an arm on the girls shoulder. "Show him he's not winning."

* * *

It was a cycle of frustration for Connor. He closed his eyes, he drifted off to sleep, and dreamt of bullets. He stayed awake and he saw Nicky brandishing the gun clumsily in the air, the blood rushing from his stomach. Every night he was conscious since the accident, he'd jolted awake without fail. Pain seared through his ribcage; he'd been lucky, according to the doctors. Three broken ribs, cuts and bruises, the latter two sustained at the flat. He didn't feel lucky. He felt sick. His mum had been coming home from school everyday with get well soon cards from staff and even students, who now, for some reason, looked at him and Kevin as heroes. He wasn't a hero.

All he wanted to do was go back to school. Being stuck in the house with nothing but a sofa and rubbish telly was not helping him take his mind off things. Imogen came round most nights, of course, but he could see the glint of sympathy in her eyes. It wasn't that he was ungrateful. It was that he wanted a simple life. He wanted to fade into the background, to be normal.

A knock at the door pulled him out of his frankly depressing thoughts. Unsurprisingly, it was Imogen. He let her in and she greeted him with a kiss and the usual how you feeling's and what have you been doing all day's. Connor rubbed his eyes tiredly, despite doing absolutely nothing all day but procrastinating on all the work he had to catch up with, and said: "What are you doing here?"

"I can't come and see my boyfriend - _husband -,_" she corrected, still having trouble referring to him as that. "without a reason?"

"You're here every night."

"Well, I can go if you want. I've got loads of coursework to do, and to be honest, writing a 2,000 word essay on Martin Luther King's role in the Civil Rights Movement will probably be a lot more interesting than you're being lately."

Connor instantly felt a stab of guilt. She was trying, and he wasn't exactly making it easy for her. "I'm sorry, alright? It's just hard. I've got nothing to do all day, I'm bored and the only person I see is you. Not that that's a bad thing!" He added quickly. "And I haven't even seen Kevin since the docks!"

It was true. Kevin hadn't spoken to him since the night of the shooting. Imogen had told Connor that Kevin was at the hospital every day while he was unconscious but when he woke up, Kevin seemed to panic. He wouldn't even go in the hospital room. It was a drastic change of heart, to go from standing vigil in the waiting room to going home the minute Connor opened his eyes, and it confused everyone.

"Yeah, well. It was hard for him, too. I think he feels guilty."

"He didn't shoot me. He's my best friend, or supposed to be, and he hasn't even text to ask if I'm okay?"

"Stop your whining." Imogen said gently, cuddling closer to him on the sofa. "Everything will be fine once you're back at school. It'll all go back to normal."

"My life doesn't know the meaning of normal." He grasped her hand, locking their fingers together and pulled her into the kitchen, clicking the kettle on and pulling the milk from the fridge. They stood in comfortable silence for a while with the bubbling of the kettle all that could be heard.

Imogen glanced at her husband, looking properly at his face for a second. He looked exhausted, like he had seen and experienced a lot more than he most in his seventeen years. Of course, he had; he'd never admit it. He would focus on the now - sober mother, girlfriend, doing well in school, ect - which is why his reaction to the shooting was worrying her so much. "You're worried, aren't you?"

"What?"

"You're worried. About Nicky." She took the cup of tea that he handed her, steam rising from the mug. "Because they haven't caught him."

"Not really." said Connor. "Well, a bit. But the thing is, he didn't mean to shoot me. I'm not excusing him or anything, but it _was _an accident. And if he actually intended to shoot someone that night, it wouldn't have been me. So I'm not worried about him coming back. I just think if he gets caught, it'll be an end to everything."

"Why is it clear-cut endings are so important to everyone? Dynasty's gone to see Steve-O tonight for exactly the same reason."

* * *

The prison was exactly how Dynasty had expected it to be, chillingly so. Stony-faced officers stood watch, ready to intervene if they saw anything that contravened the rules. She had been lectured on the way down, so many rules - no passing of objects, no hugging, no shouting, no aggression, no violence. She had to hold back a bitter laugh. Surely the last two should apply to the prisoners?

She had been shown to her seat by a female officer ten minutes ago. All the other inmates had already entered the room, finding their families and as Dynasty watched their reunions, her nerves heightened. She was beginning to fall back to how she felt after the attack, before she told anyone; confused, frightened, angry. It was a tumultuous time, and one she didn't want to experience again.

And there he was, looking exactly the same as he did the last time she saw him. Confident. She didn't know why, but she thought maybe he would have changed. He hadn't, and as he sat in front of her, drawling her name in surprise, it made her skin crawl.

"Dynasty! I knew you'd come."

"I'm here for five minutes, maybe less." Her voice was full of bitterness; this was not the man she once loved as a naive 16 year old. "If I'm honest, I wanna get up and walk straight back out, but I have to do this."

"Do what?" the rapist asked. "Look, I'm not angry with you babe. I'm not angry with you for grassin'. I know what you girls are like, with your hormones and stuff-"

He'd spoken no more than thirty-two words and already managed to make Dynasty's blood boil. She took a deep breath, determined not to cause as scene, but it was no use. "If this wasn't a prison and I wasn't a better person than you, you'd be visiting first aid with a broken nose, mate! Thank god you're not angry with me.. but I doubt it would upset me more than being _raped!" _she erupted, furious until one of the prison guards came over and asked her to quieten down.

Steve-O had the audacity to look confused. "I don't get this rape thing. You were my girlfriend!"

"I didn't want to have sex with you, but you still made me. That's rape, Steve-O, and if you had an ounce of respect for me or women in general you would have known that."

"Of course I respect you, babe, I love you! Like I said, I'm not angry. I am, but with your scum-bag of a brother for stitching me up! You know if you changed your mind, dropped the charges.. they'll let me out, and we can be together again. Just you and me, yeah?"

"You'd love that, wouldn't you?" Dynasty spat, struggling to believe what she was hearing. She wondered idly if he had some sort of mental illness. "For me to drop the charges. Even got your big brother to do your dirty work for you. Who kidnaps two seventeen year old boys?"

Uncharacteristically, Steve-O's looked ashamed. "I didn't know he was going to do that. I would've told him not to."

"Yeah, well, because of him my boyfriend was beaten up in a flat for three days, and your brother shot Connor. You know, that one who you got into loads of debt for no apparent reason." A look at the plastic clock on the wall told her she'd been here less than five minutes; she was itching to leave, but had one more question to ask. "Do you know where Nicky is? Has he called you or anything?"

"He's stupid, yeah, but not stupid enough to call a prison after what he's done."

"Is that the truth?"

"Yeah, it is."

"Good." Dynasty stood up, and turned to leave.

"Babe?"

She stopped, reluctant but curious. "What?"

"Will you come again? I've missed you."

"I never want to see you again. I wanted to come here today to ask you about Nicky and put an end to all this, but that's it. You'll get sentenced and even though you deserve life, you won't get it 'cos of the stupid justice system. So however long you get, I want your time in prison to be the worst years of your life. I want you to suffer, and when you get out, you don't come anywhere near me, alright? Don't even think about me because I _hate_ you. And you did that."

He made some sort of pathetic attempt at a plea for forgiveness, but Dynasty didn't hear him. She was already out the door.

* * *

AN: So laziness and a lack of motivation made up for the ridiculous amount of time I left between updating. This chapter is a bit longer than usual so I hope that makes up for things!

I've been a bit lazy and skipped some time by not writing Connor waking up and stuff. I hope you lot don't mind. There's still a couple more chapters to go while I tie things up but if there's anything in this that you're confused about, just ask :-)

Also, the other thing I'm really concious about in this chapter is the Steve-O/Dynasty confrontation. I tried to get them both in character, and to make it realistic. Please let me know what you think!

Enjoy xx


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